


Tips

by Tickette



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe - Bar/Pub, Alternate Universe- No Supernatural, Angst, Beer, Fights, Implied Sexual Content, Kidnapping, M/M, POV Alternating, Underage - Freeform, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-09
Updated: 2018-10-09
Packaged: 2019-07-28 13:42:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,267
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16242800
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tickette/pseuds/Tickette
Summary: Dean tends bar.  Meg washes dishes.  Cas busses tables.  Benny cooks.  Jo goes to college. Ellen rules them all.Tips - 1. Upset or over turn. 2. Tilt. 3. Advice. 4. Details.  5. Gratuity. 6. Details of unknown.No one really knows what is going on in other people's lives.  What is normal for one is hell for another.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Explicit details of daily lives. Violence. Changing POV. Implied sexual content. Dark thoughts.
> 
> Dean is 21, Sam is 17, Adam is 12. Castiel is 16.

Tips   
Part 1  
Roadhouse 

Friday night was a busy one, Meg was constantly washing dishes and had not had time to take her second break. She saw busboys Alfie, Garth, and the new guy, Steve, more than she saw them all week. By the time she got to take her second short break she chatted with Lisa, one of the four wait staff, who said they were making good tips tonight and should expect a decent cut. Meg would be glad to get some cash before her next paycheck. 

Out on the back stoop she finished her cigarette and walked in to see Steve limping in with his latest load. She gave him a nod and got to washing. She hated washing dishes but she was better at this than at waitressing. She was not going to complain too much in today's economy, she needed this job. Five minutes later Garth came in with a double load, followed closely by Alfie. 

“Damn guys, I am never going to get caught up,” She started stacking the plates in the dishwasher. 

“Don’t worry,” Garth smiled at her, “as soon as I get the last load from station three, I can help.”

Meg roller her eyes at his enthusiasm. He was always so damned upbeat he made her teeth hurt; however, she was not about to turn down any help. The pots and pans where stacking up, but the plates and glasses were first priority. She just started the load when Steve came in again. She let out a weary sigh.

At the end of the night, Ruby, another waitress, came by to give her fifty two dollars. Wow, they did have a good night. She counted it again then got ready to go. As she left she saw Ruby hand the busboys their cut. They should be happy, normally the take home was about twenty or less for them. It sucked that they all had to share but she needed the money and was not going to gripe. 

\----------

The busboys happened to be leaving together this night when Ellen was locking up. As the owner she was usually the last to leave. 

“You boys did good tonight,” Ellen smiled at them as she locked the back door. “I hope you were pleased with your cut. We get a few more nights like this and I may have to take you on as full time Steve.”

The young man nodded briefly, “That would be nice, ma’am.” His deep voice, always a shock to her, was gruff from weariness. Ellen could tell all three boys were beat.

“Have a good one and I'll see you tomorrow. Steve, could you come in an hour earlier, just in case?” She knew he needed the hours and the convention in town was doing her business well.

“Yes, ma’am,” he nodded again, not once changing his expression. He was an odd duck, but a hard worker, so she let his awkwardness slide.

They all went their separate ways with Ellen making sure each got to their vehicles safely. The Roadhouse was on the edge of town, not bad but this late at night no telling what could happen. She frowned as she watched Garth on his death trap of a scooter. He would always joke he was in a biker gang. Alfie’s VW was about fifteen years old and needed a new muffler but it was at least safer. Her frown deepened when she noticed Steve limping towards the road. She had no idea he was without transportation, she thought sure he had had a car when he started last week. She considered offering him a ride when she spied him unlocking a bike from the light pole. 

Satisfied, Ellen went upstairs to her home above her bar and grill. She was tired from bartending since Cole called in sick with food poisoning. She warned him about those eggs. She was glad to hear the shower running as she walked in the door. Jo would be out soon so she could take a bath in peace. Her daughter may gripe about still living at home while attending college, but Ellen was glad she was here so she could watch over her.

\----------

The night was warm in the late summer and with the full moon, the ride home was quite pleasant. Cas knew Bart would be asleep, so he had to be extra careful not to make any noise. Bart had to leave early in the morning to get to Ogdenville by noon, which meant Cas had to be up early to get breakfast ready for him. He slipped off his work shoes after securing his bike in back of their house. He did not want to put it in the garage because that would wake Bart. Once inside, Cas stripped down in the laundry room next to the kitchen. Bart hated the smell of his work clothes, said it made him sick. Then he took his tips and pulled out one dollar, hiding it in the manila envelope that held the owner’s manual of the washing machine. He did not understand why Meg thought tonight was any better than any other night, he always got about ten to fifteen dollars. Shaking his head, he heaved a sigh and he placed the other fifteen on the counter by the coffee pot. Bart would need the cash for his trip. 

In the guest bathroom downstairs, Cas took a quick shower, making sure to scrub his hair twice to get the smell out. He considered going up to the loft, but nixed it in favor of the couch. He longed to curl up in the guest bed, but the one time he did that, Bart was furious. Before settling down on the too short couch, Cas glanced at the clock on the stove to see it was nearly two. Fuck, he sighed. With a thought of how tired he was going be when his alarm would wake him, Cas abandoned the thought of food, said his prayers, then was asleep.

\----------

Dean did not want to go home, he was to wired from the great night he had at the Roadhouse. He had nearly seventy dollars in tips and wanted a beer. Sam would be happy that he would now be able to get that new laptop he needed for school. His old one had to be constantly plugged in and would lock up at least once a hour. 

Dean sighed as he texted his friends to let them know he was heading home and could not meet up. He hated doing it but he had responsibilities. It sucked that at twenty he had to take care of his sixteen and twelve year old brothers. He gripped the wheel of the beat up Honda Civic he had been driving for the past three years since his father wrapped the Impala around a tree and killed himself in a drunken stupor. He startled when he heard a loud pop. 

“Shit.” He had cracked the steering wheel. He would have laughed if it did not hurt so much. Why? Why could you not talk to us? He heaved a sigh to shut down his thoughts and pulled out of the parking lot of the Roadhouse, careful to avoid some idiot on a bicycle wearing dark clothes. Steve, the new guy, he needs a light or something reflective, he thought as he stopped a the red light. 

Dean was grateful everyday Ellen had taken a chance on him as a bartender. He promised and kept his promise to never drink on the job and always be on time. Ellen may be his common law aunt via being a friend of the family for years, but she was a shrewd business woman who did not take many chances when it came to the welfare of her family. Dean proved to be a hard worker and he knew better than to take advantage of Ellen generosity. 

At home, Dean peeled off the night and dumped everything in the washing machine. He added the rest of the clothes that were littered around the room then started the load. Why could they not hit the basket? He smiled to himself as he went into the kitchen. The fridge was a wasteland of fruit, vegetables, and almond milk. He was not letting those two shop again. With a frown he grabbed a slice of cheese and the last piece of bread. He rolled the two together and popped open a beer. He plopped himself down on the couch and flipped on the TV. Sam and Adam would be pissed that he was sitting there naked, reeking of sweat and alcohol, and drinking, but at the moment he couldn't care less. He was tired and wanted to shut down his brain with mindlessness before he showered and went to bed. 

Dean wanted to stop thinking about their alcoholic dad and the fact that Dean now had to care for not only Sam but Adam, their half brother, who his dad had failed to tell them about for eight years. That was quite the surprise that Sunday morning when John showed up with Adam in tow. They could not blame the kid for their father’s mistakes, but Dean did blame John for leaving him with responsibilities he could barely manage. 

Dean angrily flipped through the channels until he landed on old reruns of Baywatch. He grabbed another beer and settled in to watch Pam Anderson bounce across the screen as he stroked himself absentmindedly. Less than an hour later he was asleep with his dick in his hand, an infomercial for the latest in frying pan technology playing on the TV, and the remains of his third beer dripping on the floor.


	2. Incident

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Meg needs new gloves, Ellen is pissed, Dean is frustrated, Steve wants to help.

Tips  
Part 2  
Incident 

Meg was getting tired of dishpan hands. She mentioned to Ellen she need new gloves last week and still had not gotten any. She was out smoking by the dumpsters poking at her shriveled fingers when she heard a loud noise. She often saw patrons slip out the side door for some sort of illicit behavior. More than once she saw blowjobs, handjobs, and drug deals. She herself had acquired some weed from time to time. Once she witnessed two guys fucking in the back parking lot. Tonight she wondered what show she was going to get to watch when Steve came around the side of the building. Meg idly noted he was not limping today. He was looking around intently, his eyes all squinty, his mouth set in a hard line. 

“Who ya lookin’ for?” She chuckled when he jumped. He was so focused he did not see her sitting on the back stoop. He gave her a look, tilting his head like he was trying to figure her out when a scream grabbed both of their attentions.

“Jo,” was all he said before he took off back to the side and into the parking lot. Meg watched him for a moment before she processed what he said. Tossing her cancer stick, she ran after him. When she had caught up, Steve was getting his ass handed to him by a couple of mean looking men in biker garb. Meg spotted Jo a moment later on the ground, bleeding from her head.

“Hey dickheads!” she yelled pulling her phone from her pocket and holding it up, “I’ve called the cops!” It was a lie but it distracted the two enough so Steve could get loose of the taller one’s grip. He dropped and swiped the tall guy’s legs out from under him then ran full tilt into the other man catching him at the waist. Meg ran over and kicked tall man in the head, knocking him out, glad she wore her Doc Martins. Satisfied he would not blindside them later she saw the other man on his knees pounding Steve in the face while he lay on the pavement. 

“Oh hell no,” she said as she roundhouse kicked that guy square in the nose. Blood splattered as he screamed in pain. Meg followed up with a groin kick and finally one to the chest that knocked him back and he hit his head on the pavement. Seeing the man not moving she did dial 911 and reported the incident then she checked on her coworkers. Steve was bleeding and nearly unconscious; several feet away Jo was coming round. Torn she saw Steve flutter his eyes then relax. Yep, out cold. Meg moved toward the young woman on the ground. Jo shouldn’t be moving with a head injury, so even though Steve was bleeding, Meg went to Jo.

“Get off me,” Jo growled, pushing at the hands invading her space.

“Stop, it’s Meg, don’t move. I’ve called the cops and an ambulance,” she placed her right hand on the girl’s shoulder to make her stop moving. Meg scrolled her contacts then hit Ellen’s number. She would be pissed that Meg was calling her cell, but she would understand.

“What?” Jo looked at Meg with confused eyes. Meg couldn’t answer here because Ellen picked up.

“Why aren’t you in the kitchen? Do you want -” a very angry voice demanded before Meg cut her off with one word. 

“Jo,” she waited as that processed, which was a lot faster than Meg had earlier. The tone went from angry to concerned. Ellen could tell by Meg’s voice that something was wrong.

“Tell me.”

“Jo’s hurt. We are in the back of the side parking lot, by the burnt out light, between a green pick up and a brown and tan van,” Meg barely got the last word out before she heard the backdoor of the bar slam open. Meg leaned down to Jo, “Don’t move, your mom will be right here.”

“I don’t see you. Where?” Ellen’s strained voice was loud in Meg's ear.

“Turn left, other left,” Meg instructed when she stood. “I'm waving.”

It was dark where they were near the edge of the light from one of the two working light poles. Three of the five lights had burnt out in over the summer and the electric company had not replaced them yet. Meg waited until the older woman got there before explaining what happened. 

\-----------

Ellen was beside herself with worry, though she did not show it. She had been angry at her absent daughter. They had had an argument over Jo’s living arrangements while she attended college and hadn't resolved it before work. Jo had been avoiding Ellen all night, going to Dean for drink orders. The last she’d seen, Jo was talking quite animatedly with a group of her friends. Ellen let her daughter have her space. A little later she saw Steve bolting for the front door. She was shocked and disappointed. Ellen had been going to offer him full time starting next week. When she went to the kitchen to see what was happening with her other employees, Garth was stacking dishes as Alfie made for the dining room with his tray.

“Garth, what are you doing?” Ellen was calm but had fury in her eyes. This was not the night for three of her employees to ditch.

Garth smiled wide at her. “I am helping out while Meg is taking her break. She should be back,” he turned to look at the clock by the door. His smile slipped, “seven minutes ago.”

“Thank you for helping. I am going to have a talk with our dishwasher.” Ellen turned to leave. This would be Meg’s first and only warning. Meg knew better than to abuse breaks, and to just leave Garth to do her job was unacceptable. 

“Hey Ellen, we need new gloves, these leak,” Garten said with a weak smile. She knew what he was doing but nothing would distract her, however, she did nod at Garth.

“Okay, I'll put it down on the list.” Ellen frowned and turned to leave. She would not be moved from her wrath. On top of Jo disappearing and Steve leaving, Ellen was in no mood for slackers. Jo was going to be so grounded, she didn’t care that college started in two weeks. She was still living under her roof and still her child. Steve may have to be let go for abandoning his post when they were short handed, and Meg. Oh Meg might have to feel the full brunt of her anger. Ellen could not believe this night. Right as she got to the door her phone rang. When she saw Meg’s name show up she frowned in confusion and hit the green button. That was when her night truly went to hell.

She got to them right when she heard sirens in the distance, she unconsciously judged them to be two to three miles away. Ellen gasped at the sight, Jo had blood on one side of her face and she looked disoriented. She kept trying to get up and Meg was trying to keep her down. When Ellen kneeled down, Meg stepped aside. 

“Jo, honey, Mom's here. What happened?” Ellen was working hard to keep the worry from her voice. 

“These guys…” Jo looked around wildly. She had fear on her face. “Forced me… hit -”

“Shh, shh,” Ellen could tell that Jo had a concussion, how bad they would find out when they got to the hospital. Jo was crying while Ellen held her. Never had she seen her baby in such a state. Ellen looked around and saw Meg kneeling a couple of yards over. Ellen was shocked to see that Meg had taken out three grown men.

“Steve!” Jo said through her tears. She stopped crying enough to look around. “Where-”

“He left, I don’t know where he went,” Ellen told her frantic daughter. Jo shook her head.

“No! Steve was here! I remember.” 

Ellen was afraid her daughter’s head injury was worse than she thought.

“Jo, sweetheart, what do you mean?”

Meg took that moment to speak up, “Steve’s over here. He’s just knocked out Jo.”

Jo visibly relaxed at the news. Ellen was confused. “Meg, tell me what happened.”

The sirens were getting louder, so Meg had to speak up. “I was on break when Steve came running out. We heard Jo scream and ran over here. By the time I caught up, Jo was out and Steve had them,” she pointed with distaste at the prone men, “occupied. We stopped them.” The surprize in her voice was as evident as was on her face. She looked over at Ellen and Jo, then bent over, who Ellen now knew was Steve. Meg got up and waved at the emergency vehicles when they got closer. 

The EMTs made short work of the two men who had started to rouse. Both were handcuffed and put in the cruisers by the police. Meg was retelling her tale to one of the officers while the other oversaw the two assailants. The another EMT cleaned up Jo and deemed her injury to be superficial but she needed to have some tests done to at the hospital. Ellen relaxed a bit. While her daughter was being strapped to a gurney and protesting that she was fine, Ellen looked over to where the other EMT was helping Steve. She gasped at the site. She stepped close to her daughter to block her view.

“I’ll meet you at the hospital. I need to let the others know we will be short handed.” Ellen smiled until Jo was in the ambulance and succumbing to their care. It killed her that she could not ride with her, but she had things to take care of, plus she knew her child was okay. She frownwd as she rushed over to Steve.

“Oh damn,” she breathed. He was covered in blood and cuts. “Is he going to be okay?” 

Before she could get an answer the cop that had been talking to Meg came over. He asked her questions about what happened. The interview was over in a few minutes but in that time Steve was loaded up in the other ambulance. Ellen turned to Meg who looked beat.

“Take the rest of the night off. You earned it,” Ellen caught the young woman when she staggered beside her. At a look, Ellen reiterated her order. “You are coming off an adrenaline high and need to settle down. How about I drop you off at home on my way to the hospital?”

\----------

Dean was pissed that he had the whole bar to himself, plus Ruby and Lisa were snapping at him because Jo had left leaving them to pick up the slack. Cassie, the other waitress, had the night off. In the rush to fill orders, Dean dropped a bottle of whiskey and spilled half on the floor before he could get to it, broke three glasses, and dumped nearly a full pitcher of beer on himself. Cole had taken his lunch break over an hour ago and Ellen, who filled in when one of the bartenders was on break, was nowhere to be seen. He told Cole not to be late, but he still had not made it back. When things slowed down, Cole finally decided to come back after a two hour lunch and Ellen asked to see Dean in the back. Dean was debating on telling Ellen about Cole when he saw Lisa, Garth, and Meg gathered by the prep table with Benny and Ash, the two line cooks.

“There was an incident earlier that has Jo and Steve in the hospital. They are fine. Jo was taken for routine tests for a concussion,” Ellen was never one to sugar coat. “The two men who tried to abduct her were taken into custody. Steve and Meg stopped what could have been a lot worse.”

Dean’s heart nearly stopped at the news, he barely heard the rest. Jo was nearly abducted? In the hospital? He looked over at a very pale Meg, who was pale normally, but was now white as a sheet, nod. Ruby and Alfie came in and stood next to Dean.

“Dean, fill those two in when I am done,” she ordered, never one to repeat herself, “I am going to ask each of you to cover for them while they are out. I will cover the overtime. Meg is going home--” she held up a hand to stop Meg. “No, young lady, you go home and start fresh tomorrow. I am going to the hospital to check on my daughter. Benny, close the kitchen at ten, no exceptions. Garth, cover Meg’s station. Alfie, Lisa and Ruby can help bus. Dean, you know how to close the register. Shut it down at midnight if I am not here. I appreciate your help here.”

Garth was the only one to speak up when she finished. “Is Steve okay?”

Ellen looked at him with a firm expression but worried eyes. Dean had an uneasy feeling about it. 

“He was beat up pretty bad and was still unconscious when they left. I will let you all know tomorrow. I'll call his emergency contact on the way. Let’s go, Meg.”

Soon after they left, Dean got busy, he did not want to think about what could have happened. Jo was nearly abducted. They had to have tricked her, there was no way she was that stupid to go out with strangers. Plus she was a badass fighter who had a blackbelt in… something. More than once she demonstrated her moves, much to his back’s displeasure. Dean really did9ot know Steve, having only worked here for about a month? He could not remember. What he did know was that the guy was too skinny, did not look twenty one, and he limped a lot, like he had a bum leg or something, and rode a damned bicycle. Dean would have to thank him and Meg for saving Jo. Oh man, Jo had to be pissed that she was saved by an rail thin dude and a pixie short girl. Dean nearly laughed out loud at the site that had to have been. He would save that for later when she needed to be reminded she was not the complete badass she boasted. He frowned again. She was unable to protect herself, this gave Dean pause.

Cole was slacking but the crowd had thinned, per usual on a Wednesday night. By the end of the evening, Dean was ready to beat Cole into next week. He warned the guy if he ever slacked the way he did tonight, he would make sure that would be the last time. Cole seemed to get the message, though he did roll his eyes at one point. They were all ready to close by the time midnight rolled around. Normally the Roadhouse stayed open until one, but tonight there were only a handful of patrons. 

Dean got home at one-thirty in the morning and just fell into bed. The work day was long and he did not really want to admit he was worried about Jo. They had gone out a couple of times before she told him that she only saw him as a brother, having grown up with him from middle school. It broke his heart, though he never let her see. A year later he was still pining. It was all he could do earlier not to bolt for the hospital. Ellen was never fond of them to together, she made that very clear, but then again, she never approved of anyone Jo went out with.


End file.
